Bless Me, Ultima, By Rudolfo Anaya is a moving story about a boy who is the last hope of his family and must decide on a culture and his own fate. Throughout the book readers recognizes allusions to the Bible but mainly to the Holy Trinity. The Holy Trinity is an alliance of three principles, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Antonio has three religions that influence him and each are alluded to the Trinity. The Father represents the Catholic religion and God, also the faith he resembles. The Golden Carp alludes to the Son, and his guidance of right and wrong and Antonio’s morality. The Holy Spirit is represented by Ultima and old curandera that resembles wisdom. By analysis of the book Bless Me Ultima, Anya uses the allusion of the Holy Trinity to conclude that through wisdom, faith, and morality a conflict can be reconciled.

Throughout the text, Rudolfo Anaya uses the allusion of the Holy Spirit illustrates that when one only relies on wisdom a conflict cannot be resolved. This conclusion is confirmed when Tenorio has blamed Ultima; who resembles wisdom and the Holy Spirit, for the loss of his child. “It is not rumor,” Narciso pleaded, “he has gathered his cronies around him at the bar, he has filled them with whiskey all day, and he has convinced them to burn a witch! They come on a witchhunt!” (Pg 128). The citizen’s fear of Ultima shows that he is using the allusion of the Holy Spirit and when Antonio only relies on one part of his Holy Trinity he fails to commit to resolving his conflict. Then he soon finds himself and his family in danger. Antonio again only depends on the wisdom Ultima supplies him, and then he realizes an internal conflict he has created after witnessing a fight between Narciso and Andrew. “Had I already lost my innocence? How? I had seen Lupito murdered… I had seen Ultima’s cure… I had seen the men come to hang her… I had seen the awful fight just now… I had seen and reveled in the beauty...

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...personified in the Chicano works of BlessMeUltima, The House on Mango Street, and in He Was On of Those Special Ones, She Said.
The theme of “Good vs. Evil” played an important role in the novel BlessMe, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya. The most notable representation of “Good vs. Evil” in the novel is characterized by struggle between Ultima and Tenorio. Right from the start,Ultima is displayed as being morally sound and wholesome. For example, Maria says, “I am grateful, perhaps we can repay a little of the kindness la Grande has given to so many” (Anaya 4). This image of Ultima representing “Goodness” and morality continues throughout the novel. She acts as the defender of her community by saving people suffering from curses of black magic and by ridding evil from the community. One prime example of this occurred in the chapter “Diez”. In this chapter, Ultima saves Antonio’s uncle Lucas from near death after he is afflicted with an evil curse.
Tenorio, on the other hand, is displayed as being sheer evil and morally depraved and wicked. Tenorio, along with his witchcraft practicing daughters, represent the “Evil” side of the archetype and take their place, as Ultima’s arch-nemesis’s throughout the novel. Together they wreak havoc on the community by casting curses on innocent townsfolk and by indulging in satanic rituals, murder,...

...Jasmine Tran
Ms. Brzowski
English 2 PDP - Period 1
09.12.2012
Seminar Notes: BlessMeUltima
1. BlessMeUltima fits the description of "magical realism" because the story talks a lot about a curandera named Ultima. As we all know, a curandera is a healer. Rudolfo Anaya portrays Ultima as this old lady who has magical and spiritual powers. She seems to bring life to things around her.
"When she came the beauty of the llano unfolded before my eyes, and the gurgling waters of the river sang to the hum of the turning earth. The magical time of childhood stood still, and the pulse of the living earth pressed it mystery into my living blood." (Anaya, 1)
"Your daughter will not lift the curse, and so I must work the magic beyond evil, the magic that endures forever-" (Anaya, 94)
2. Archetypes in BlessMeUltima:
Virgin of Guadalupe, Ultima = Mother.
Motherly is an archetype in BlessMeUltima. It reflects the cultural heritage of Ultima because she is a curandera and she was at Antonio's birth and his catechism. She is like his protector.
Tenorio, his daughters = Dark, evil figures.
Evil figures is an archetype in BlessMeUltima. It reflects the cultural heritage of Tenorio's daughters because they lost...

...Irma Rosero
AFPRL 356 Latino Literature
Sec 051
September 18, 2011
Cultural and Religious Identity: Blessme, UltimaBlessUltima, me, is a novel written by Rudolfo Anaya in 1972. The story starts in 1940 during and
after World Word II in Guadalupe, New Mexico. The main character is Antonio. Anaya describes
Antonio’s childhood through a life changing journey. Also, Ultima, the “ curandera” who helped his
mother in childbirth has a strong presence in his spiritual growth and development. Antonio portrays a
human being with internal struggles and experiences that conflict with tradition, beliefs, faith, religion
and find acceptance of change and growth.
Antonio’s familia education is tense with the two opposing symbols of Spanish colonization, his
mother’s family, the Lunas, and his father ‘s family, the Marez. The Lunas represent the indigenous
people, tied to the earth by their farming; whereas, the Marez represent the conquistadors, freely
roaming the llano. Through the novel, Antonio is divided between his Luna blood and his Marez
blood, always trying to decide between the two and please his parents desire. “This one will be a
Luna….he will be a farmer and keep our customs and traditions. Perhaps God will be bless our family
and make the baby a...

...BlessMeUltima is the story of how a curandera named Ultima and her owl come to live with the Marez-Luna family in the their small home on a rocky hill in Guadalupe, New Mexico during World War II, and of how she helps influence and teach the hero of the story, young Antonio Marez in the ancient customs of healing and magic.
We learn that Ultima was the midwife during Antonio’s birth, and that after performing his birth, Ultima has a special bond with the boy, and this becomes evident in a dream where Antonio remembers how Ultima presided over his birth, and of the differences between his father’s family – vaqueros or cowboys – and his mother’s – a peaceful farming family who were part of the original settlers of New Mexico. His father is not religious, while his mother is devoutly a Catholic, and there is tension in the home due to this. Both parents agree to bring Ultima into their home because she is old, and they respect her, and while she is not related to them, she is closely linked to their family.
Following a horrific shooting of the towns sheriff by Lupito, a damaged and disturbed returning Mexican G.I. – Antonio witnesses Lupito’s own murder on the river by his father, and a group of towns men seeking vengeance for the senseless murder of the sheriff by Lupito. Here, Antonio sees how Narciso, the town drunk is kinder even than his...

...make it difficult for him to agree with their wants. He works with Ultima helping her collect herbs and healing his uncle.
A significant action performed by Antonio is when stands up for Florence during the mock confession. When Florence says that he has never sinned and the other boys start to beat him up, Antonio sees that Florence truly believes he has never sinned and he tells him that he is forgiven and he gets no penance.
Antonio forgives Florence and gives him no penance during the mock confession because Antonio sees the truth in Florence’s eyes.
“I tried to pull their hands away from him to relieve the pain I saw in his face, but the trapping of the priest’s costume entangled me and so I could do very little.” (212)
Antonio is inquisitive, because he questions everything around him. He questions his God, he questions his beliefs, he questions punishment, he questions the powers of the church, and he questions Ultima’s powers. He wants answers to all his questions, but honestly some of his questions just can’t be answered.
At the beginning of BlessMeUltima all Antonio wants to do is please his parents, but as time goes on and he witnesses things such as death and Ultima’s magic he sees that it isn’t that simple. He’s now conflicted between all of the possibilities of the world that he did not know about before. He goes from a young naïve boy to a boy who maybe knows too much....

...surround them. Like the quote above states, the incidents they go through are simply black and white, good and bad. However, as they grow older, they lose their innocent state of mind. They are suddenly thrown into a world where they are constantly struggling to defeat the odds and are desperately seeking answers to life's questions. Is there anyone that helps them during this difficult time, to see the "shades of gray?" Of course, there can be many answers to this question, but I think the single most influential person who guides a child through this stage is a family member. Family is one of the most important factors that help shape a person's life. In the critically lauded and moving tales of "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee and "BlessMe, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya, the protagonists are all children, newly thrust into the world, faced with extreme obstacles and situations that test their character. Each one deals with these obstacles in different ways because of their different personalities. However, one thing is certain--the main characters of both novels overcome their hurdles and develop a strong level of morality along the way because they are guided by the love, understanding, and experience of their family members.
A major theme in To Kill a Mockingbird is the moral nature of humans. At the beginning of the novel, Scout and Jem live in their childhood world, intuitively assuming that everyone is good because not...

...Karina Garcia
Mr. Marquez
English 10 Period 6
October 29, 2013
In the novel BlessMe, Ultima, Antonio has many dreams but there is on dream that changes him completely. The author of BlessMeUltima is Rudolfo Anaya. In this dream Antonio watched all of the people he cared about die and experiences the presence of the three men that are an important part of his life.
Tony sees three figures standing in front of him but he is unsure of who they are until they finally reveal themselves. “This is the boy who heard our last confession on earth…” (243). At first Tony thinks he is looking at his brothers but then he realizes they are Lupito, Narciso, and Florence. He sees them standing there and staring right into his eyes. He can tell it’s them by what they just said. “These are the men I have seen die! I cried. Who else will my prayers accompany to the land of death?” (243). Antonio is hurt because he is looking at the three most important people that passed away in front of him. He feels hurt by what he is seeing and hearing. Tony is depressed by the loss of his mentors.
In three middle part of this dream he sees two of his most trusted Gods being destroyed. “…the priest desecrated the altar by pouring the blood of dead pigeons into the holy chalice. The old gods are dying, he laughed.” (244). In this part the priest is pouting blood instead of the traditional wine while laughing at...

...Courtney Pauley
Professor Barnes
Acc English 10/ 2
September 20, 2012
Theme Analysis: BlessMeUltima/ Civil Peace
Chinua Achebe and Rudolfo Anaya write stories about two people that must over come struggles and difficulties in life. The characters in both stories must overcome internal and external conflict. A theme expressed in both stories is that everyone has conflicted and struggles in their life but they must overcome and make the best of the situation. This theme is expressed through character thoughts, symbolism and character experiences.
In Anaya’s story, BlessMeUltima, the main character, Antonio must over come many different obstacles, in one summer. Throughout Antonio’s summer he experiences death everywhere, he experiences the death of a stranger, family friend, and 2 close friends, but some how through it all he stays strong. He witnesses the death of a dear friend, “ the lonely river was a sad place to be when one is a small boy who has just seen a friend die” (Anaya, 231). Antonio wintness the death of someone from town, Lupito, although he did not really know the man, witnessing the death of anyone can be saddening, “ I saw Lupito lifted off his feet and hurled backwards by the bullets.” (Anaya 20) Not only did Antonio have to say goodbye to the people who died, shortly after his brothers returned from war, they were gone again, “I wondered if I would ever...